Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1887-12-15
PARIS PAvEMENTs.
An Army OF Men and Women Employs
i'm Cleaning Them.

An Army OF Men and Women EMPLOYED
In Cleaning Them.
Wooden pavements are slowly tax
ing the place of every other kind
in Paris. On the 1st of January, 1884.
this system had just been introduced
and was being experimental with ON
a surface of 707. 400 square feet; by the
end of tho year 1882. 056 square feet
of streets was paved in this way.
Great as this rate of progress seems it
is not half fast enough, for there still
remains 80. $40 900 square feet of
streets paved with stone or macadam.
With all their advantages of noise
1essness and cleanliness wooden pave
ments have the drawback of being
very expensive, not only to put down,
but also to keep in repair. 1t costs
~ 10 cents the square meter. while
stone pavements do not ever cost more
than Is 1-5 the square meter. The
streets are shaded by 90. $50 trees. the
sidewalks are supplied with s. 334
benches where the tired may rest their
weary limbs, and to keep the
thoroughfares reasonably clean the
city expends p. 800. 900 francs an
nually.
large portion of this sum goes to
pay the 3. 900 men and women who are
employed to sweep the streets and gut
tiers with birch brooms. The brigade
of street sweepers come from the PROV
inces, but Italy furnishes strong con-
tingent To the force. There are two
classes of these balayeurs and balav-
euses-the auxiliaries and the regulars.
The former are paid from TO 5 cents
an hour, and are expected to do ten
hours work day, which is divided up
as follows: From 4 to IL a. m. and
from 1 to p. M; but it often hap
pens. in bad weather, that supple
mental hours of work have to be per-
formed. while on the other hand, in
fair we ather, the days are cut down TO
half time. The auxiliaries are re-
cruited according 10 the need of the
service, and many of them are men
and women who have other trades in
which, for the time being. they are
unable to find employment OF late
the city has made it rule to offer five
or six days work as auxiliary balay-
eurs to the inmates of the night ref
uges, and in this way number of
declasses-university graduates. pro-
fessional men. ex-goyernment en-
p!oyes. etc.-fnd their way into the
= street-clcaning brigade. Few OF
these however. remain in ii
permanently The regulars, who
are known as contonniers, are
employed By the month. and no one is
appointed who is past the age of forty
five years. They receive fixed salary
of los francs month. and each gang
is under me command of a chief who
is paid 120 francs month for his serv-
ices as boss. The balayeurs are divid-
ed into eight sections. and to each of
them is assigned section of the city.
At intervals during the day the chief
assemblies his gang and calls the roll
to assure himself that all are at their
posts. Women as well as men are en-
ployed 10 sweep, but few of them earn
as much as so cents day. For most
part the women who accept this en-
ployment are peasants from the en-
virons of Paris. and they are usually
past middle life. The other day the
baIayeurs and balayeuses held a meet
ing and resolved to organize a trade
syndicate, with view to securing an
increase in their pay, which they claim
is not only too small, but is also too de-
pendent on the caprice of the officials
in charge of their department. As
modern cities go. Paris takes high
rank for the cleanliness of its streets.
The cutters measure more than SOC
miles in length, and every morning
water is turned into them and they are
swept BY hand. Cor " O. Pieayune